Manila Photowalk 2012

Starting the new year with a little tour around my home and most favorite city in the world (support your own!) - Manila - with some of the coolest office friends and the Cheese, of course.

We started here.

Before meeting in a small park not far from this abandoned-lot-turned-into-skate-park.

Took a break in this alley reminiscent of Vigan's cobblestoned street...

Which is directly in front of this...

So we went inside and look who we found!

Resumed walking to what we supposed was Fort Santiago (but not really)...

What remains of the original facade...

Inside Fort Santiago is Rizal Shrine that houses relics, works and memorabilia from Rizal's time. I took a photo of this portrait because he looks so gwapo here! Aminin nyo.

Got amazed with his Valedictory Poem (Ang Tulang Walang Hanggan) written on the floor! 

Tired and super hungry we roamed to nearby Binondo looking for the perfect and most recommended restaurant to try. We found Sincerity Restaurant on Yuchengco Street, unfortunately they're about to close for the day, ergo no famous Sincerity chicken for us. Most of the highly recommended restaurants are closed (because it's Sunday?!) so never mind, we just picked any restaurant that can serve any food for 5 hungry people. 

And found ourselves in Golden Fortune restaurant (we were right on time for their promo meals!).

These are the happy (and excited) faces of hungry and tired people upon serving of food. Sulit na sulit, in all fairness!

I've done various little Manila tours but each one is always a different experience. I hope to do more of these in the coming days. It doesn't only open our eyes to our own little pockets of treasure, it also teaches us a little bit of our historical past, which come to think of it,many of us have already forgotten. Always a pleasure to reacquaint yourself to your own city with rich cultural history.

So, have you seen your own Manila lately?

Old Photos of Manila

I love looking, reading and finding out about old Manila photos, old Philippine churches, photos of our ancestors or just about anything related to the old Philippines.

Looking at the old faces of our ancestors, I try to picture how they lead their lives and what their personal stories are based from what I can see and it's not that difficult, really. 

Manila, Manila, Manila. You were such a darling city of the orient once upon a time.

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All photos courtesy of Mr. John Tewell. See more of old Philippine photos from his collection site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johntewell/sets/72157617770699569/

Binondo Church, date unknown

Escolta Street, Manila, Philippines, Picture in Leslies's Weekly, New York, USA, Janurary 27, 1900

Old photo of Fort Santiago Gate. The main gate in the middle is what remains now of the original foundation. 

Aerial view of Manila Bay circa 1932

Aerial view of Old Manila. You can clearly see the building of the National Post Office.

San Beda College circa 1945

Old photo Tondo Church

A boy riding a carabao. I really like this photo :)

For extras:

Banaue Rice Terraces circa 1946. Note how they named it Igorot Rice Terraces, probably after Banaue natives.

Jones Bridge, National Post Office Building circa 1920s

University of the Philippines Manila circa 1945, damaged by the war

Baguio Cathedral circa 1945

Our Dear Old Manila

I love looking at old Manila photos. Gives me an idea of what Manila used to look like before it became this big sprawling megalopolis slowly decaying before our very eyes. Yes, that's what historians tell us, that's what foreigners tell us, that's what old people tells us. Them who've seen the old city and can provide comprehensive details about how it once used to be.

Looking at old photos of different parts of Manila somehow made me yearn of the old city that I never knew of. Indeed, what we've read in our elementary books, what our teachers, lolos and lolas told us were quite right: Manila used to be one of the most magnificent cities in Southeast Asia. It was grander than Singapore, even more appealing than the rest of Southeast Asian countries' capitals.

I won't go on enumerating all the pitfalls, unlawful, wicked and erroneous things we have done to our historical buildings, waterways, roads, etc. that made our once beautiful Manila the way it is now: a dead Pasig river, disappearing and decaying national heritage sites, deadly metro traffic and most recently, the cities being engulfed by waters that overflowed from rivers currently being blamed from a city plan gone awry.

But let me leave all the accusing and criticisms to the institutions trying hard to clean their hands from all the faults being pointed at them and focus more on the good memories of a city that was. I'm really glad these photos survived wars and natural catastrophes.

Jones Bridge. Connecting Intramuros to Quiapo. First built in 1632 but was damaged by several earthquakes, was rebuilt by Juan Arellano in 1922.

Old Quiapo Church.

Calle Rosarion in Binondo

photos from brownpau.

PGH main entrance circa 1945

photo from BrownMan blog.

Escolta bridge from Manilablog.

Cubao circa 1973. It's surprisingly maluwag and maaliwalas.

Sidewalk vendors

Old Luneta.

Rizal Park. Again still so much space kahit hindi na circa 1900ish.

Araneta circa 1960 sans Gateway, SM and other malls.

Photos from ikaunangpahina.wordpress.